Table of Contents
from Getting Stronger

Introduction ... 8

General Conditioning ... 14

• Before You Start ... 14

  • Setting Goals ... 14
  • When You Start ... 14
  • How Often Should You Lift? ... 15
  • How Many Sets? ... 15
  • How Many Reps? ... 16
  • How Much Weight? ... 16
  • When To Increase Weights? ... 16
  • Two Types of Lifting ... 16
  • The Seven Most Important Muscle Groups ... 16
  • Cardiovascular Training ... 16
  • Benefits of Resistance Exercise ... 17
  • The General Conditioning Program ... 17

• How to Lift ... 18

  • Stretching ... 18
  • Flexibility and Range of Motion ... 18
  • Breathing ... 18
  • Safety ... 19

• Weight Training for Women ... 26

  • The Body Beautiful ... 26
  • Strength Training for Women ... 26
  • Hard Training ... 27
  • Special Training Considerations for Women ... 27
  • Women’s Bodybuilding ... 29

Bodybuilding ... 30

• Beginning Bodybuilding ... 33

• Intermediate Bodybuilding ... 37

• Advanced Bodybuilding ... 39

• Competitive Bodybuilding ... 42

• Posing ... 46

• 12 Basic Poses ... 48

• Cautions for Bodybuilders ... 49

• My Routine ... 50

Strength Training For Sports ... 51

• The Elements Of Fitness ... 53

  • Strength ... 53
  • Muscular Endurance ... 53
  • Cardiovascular Endurance ... 53
  • Flexibility ... 54

• Sports Training Principles ... 55

  • The Most Important Principles in Weight Training for Sports ... 55
  • Strength/Power/Speed ... 57
  • Fast Twitch Fibers/Slow Twitch Fibers/Intermediate Twitch Fibers ... 57
  • Isometric/Isokinetic/Isotonic ... 59

• Training Concepts For Advanced Athletes ... 61

  • Workout Techniques ... 61
  • High Intensity Training ... 61
  • Split Routines ... 62
  • Super Stretching ... 63
  • Plyometric Exercises ... 63
  • Periodization ... 64

• Cardiovascular Training ... 66

  • Risk Factor Questionnaire ... 66
  • Aerobic/Anaerobic ... 67
  • Summary of Cardiovascular Principles ... 68
  • Checking Your Pulse ... 68
  • Types of Cardiovascular Activities ... 68

• Power of Positive Lifting ... 70

Stretches For Weight Training ... 73

Sports Training Programs ... 81

• All-Around Athlete ... 84

• Aerobic Dance ... 86

• Baseball ... 88

• Basketball ... 92

• Boxing ... 97

• Cycling ... 100

• Football ... 104

• Golf ... 112

• Gymnastics ... 116

• Ice Hockey ... 120

• Powerlifting ... 124

• Rowing ... 130

• Running (Distance) ... 134

• Skiing (Cross-Country) ... 138

• Skiing (Downhill) ... 142

• Soccer ... 146

• Swimming ... 149

• Tennis ... 153

• Track & Field ... 156

• Triathlon ... 165

• Volleyball ... 169

• Wrestling ... 172

• Fine Tuning ... 176

  • Muscular Arms ... 177
  • Strong Back ... 178
  • Tight Bottom ... 179
  • Larger Chest ... 180
  • Shapely Legs ... 181
  • Broad Shoulders ... 182
  • Flat Stomach ... 183

Exercises for Free Weights ... 184

• Body Parts ... 186

  • Abdominals ... 190
  • Back ... 202
  • Biceps ... 218
  • Calves ... 236
  • Chest ... 244
  • Forearms ... 258
  • Neck ... 266
  • Shoulders ... 272
  • Thighs ... 284
  • Triceps ... 300

Hardware ... 311

• Picking a Gym ... 312

  • Commercial Bodybuilding Gyms ... 312
  • Health Clubs/Spas ... 312
  • School, University or YMCA Weight Rooms ... 312
  • Big or Small Club—Which Should You Join ... 313
  • Personal Trainers: What to Look For and Look Out For ... 313
  • The Home Gym ... 315

• Free Weights vs. Machines ... 318

  • Free Weights ... 318
  • Auxiliary Equipment ... 319
  • Traditional Machines ... 319
  • Nautilus Machines ... 319
  • 21st Century Weight Training Machines ... 321

• The New Weight Training Machines ... 322

• Keiser Pneumatic Machines ... 326

• Keiser X-Press Training Circuit ... 327

Fit for Life ... 333

• Lower Back Pain ... 334

• Should Kids Lift? ... 338

• Getting Older ... 341

Muscles ... 344

• Types of Muscle ... 346

• Inside the Muscle Cell ... 346

• The Architecture of Muscle ... 347

• Tendons and Ligaments ... 348

• Why Muscles Get Bigger and Stronger ... 349

• Stress and Response ... 349

• The Overload Principle ... 350

• Physiological Benefits of Weight Training ... 351

Injuries ... 352

• Rehabilitation of Injuries ... 354

• Injury Prevention ... 355

Injury Rehabilitation Program ... 356

• Shoulder Rehab with Weights ... 356

• Knee Rehab with Machines and Weights ... 358

• Lower Back Rehab ... 360

Nutrition ... 362

• Nutrients ... 363

• Proteins, Carbohydrates, and Fat ... 364

• Fats ... 366

• References, Nutrition ... 367

• Advanced Supplementation ... 369

  • The AminoAcid L-Glutamine ... 369
  • Energy Transfer Enhancers ... 369
  • Pro-Hormones ... 369
  • Joint Therapies ... 370

• Natural Foods ... 373

  • Ten Simple Rules ... 373

• A Vegetarian Bodybuilder? ... 374

Drugs ... 379

• Steroids and You ... 381

• Side Effects of Steroid Use ... 381

• Human Growth Hormone ... 382

• Other Ergogenic Substances ... 383

A Brief History of Resistance Exercise ... 385

Appendix ... 404

• Training Card ... 405

• Language of Lifting ... 406

• Recommended Reading ... 412

• Exercise Index — Drawings ... 414

• Index ... 421